Colleges in the US are reportedly testing a method of location tracking in the form of an app that is mandatory to be installed in students’ smartphones. This arrives at a time where digital privacy is a major concern globally and is already seeing backlash.

The report pointed out the University of Missouri, where students “won’t be given a choice” and are required to install SpotterEDU app. This app works via Apple’s iBeacons to broadcast a Bluetooth signal which helps in determining whether a student is actually in a room. According to a different source, however, the app is said to only be compulsory for athletes and it is “completely optional” for students. Although the fact of its mere existence is more questionable to many.

SpotterEDU is currently being tested in a number of different educational bodies including 40 schools as well, according to the founder Rick Carter, also a former college basketball coach which explains its target audience being athletes. Even though US universities’ have stated that it does not include GPS tracking other reports suggest that students can willingly offer GPS coordinates if they choose to do so.

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Similarly, another firm called Degree Analytics, which is a startup, uses Wi-FI signals instead of Bluetooth and is already employed in 19 schools. Another example is FanMaker that provides “loyalty points” to students that stay longer to watch college sports games at the stadium, implemented in 40 schools. This all has led to a stream of criticism and has seen people draw similarities to a digital authoritarian rule that may occur in the future.

The last line is probably a bit of a stretch but it has concerned individuals from digital privacy fields that have also run case studies against Chinese educational bodies that feature a similar tracking method. As of right now, the systems in place do not sound too pervasive and are technically unavoidable but it does seem to suggest that tracking students is a common thing now. What its future ramifications are, that remains to be seen.

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It appears that might be happening soon as there is a chance that pharmaceutical companies and advertisers who are interested in data about your personal health will soon have access to it.

According to a report jointly published by the Center for Digital Democracy (CDD) and American University, there is virtually no privacy measure in place to protect consumer health data, and companies who need such data are aware and plan to take advantage of it.

The report first lists the advantage there is to having a connected-health system such as personalized health insurance policies and better emergency services but states the system can also be taken advantage of. It goes on to say that since a lot of the health monitoring devices we wear are already being integrated into a growing Big Data digital health and marketing ecosystem, which is focused on gathering and monetizing personal health data in order to influence consumer behavior. If the system is allowed to grow and evolve without privacy checks in place, the nature and extent of data collected will be unprecedented.

CDD wants actions to be carried out to protect consumer health data abuse. They are requesting for collaborative efforts to develop a comprehensive approach to health privacy and consumer protection, using:

• Clear, enforceable standards for both the collection and use of information;
• Formal processes for assessing the benefits and risks of data use; and
• Stronger regulation of direct-to-consumer marketing by pharmaceutical companies.

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While a number of people might not realize it yet, maybe due to the fact that only a small percentage of the world’s population uses a health monitoring device compared to smartphones but the earlier these protective measures are there, the better for the whole lot of us.

Source: Democraticmedia.org

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